The Golden Globes Big Picture: Clooney, "The Artist" Lead the Pack

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When the 69th Annual Golden Globe Awards are handed out next January, expect to see a lot of George Clooney.

Instead of having his two big films - "The Ides of March," which he also directed, and "The Descendants" - cancel each other out, they combined forces to make the A-list charmer a dominant presence on the list of Golden Globe nominees.

2012 Globes Nominees

Clooney was nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Drama for "The Descendants" while also snagging a Best Director and a Best Screenplay nod for himself and co-writer Grant Heslov for "Ides of March" (co-star Ryan Gosling was also nominated for the film). "Descendants" director Alexander Payne was nominated for Best Director and the movie for Best Picture - Drama, rounding out an extremely strong showing for all things Clooney.

Clooney has 8 Golden Globe nominations already under his belt in both TV (he was nominated three times for his role on the medical drama "ER") and film. He's won twice - in 2001 he took home Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy for the Coen Brothers' "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" and again in 2006 for his supporting turn in the drama "Syriana." He and Heslov were nominated in 2006 for writing the drama "Good Night, and Good Luck."

Clooney will no doubt be staring playful daggers at his "Ocean's Eleven" cohort Brad Pitt, whose "Moneyball" is also a strong competitor. And for Pitt, his Best Actor - Drama nomination could mean both Globe and Oscar gold, given director Bennett Miller's track record. Miller's last directorial effort, "Capote," earned star Philip Seymour Hoffman both a Golden Globe and an Academy Award for Best Actor wins in 2006.

"The Descendants'" Payne, meanwhile, won a Golden Globe in 2005 for Best Screenplay ("Sideways") and was nominated for Best Director. He did the same (won screenplay, nominated for director) in 2003 with "About Schmidt" starring Jack Nicholson. In 2005, Payne also took home the Oscar for writing the "Sideways" screenplay, and was nominated for Best Director.

The other big Golden Globe heavyweight is a bit more surprising - A French silent film. Michel Hazanavicius's "The Artist" nabbed honors for both of its lead actors, Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo, as well as Screenplay and Director noms for Hazanavicius. The film, set in 1927 and filmed silently in black and white, will also compete for Best Picture - Musical or Comedy.

"The Help" also peppers the list, with co-stars Octavia Spencer and Jessica Chastain going head-to-head in the Best Supporting Actress - Drama category.

The TV landscape featured some surprising new entries, including Ryan Murphy's "American Horror Story," which will compete for Best Series - Drama and also scored a Best Actress - Mini-Series or Television Show nomination for Jessica Lange. Zooey Deschanel's "New Girl" and Laura Dern's "Enlightened" will also rub shoulders against established TV comedy heavyweights such as "30 Rock" and "Modern Family." The political drama "Homeland" was also a dark horse leading up to the Globes, and walked away with a Best Series - Drama and a Best Actor - Drama nomination for star Damien Lewis.

Other surprises include the absolute snubbing of the critically-acclaimed British drama "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy" and Terence Malik's controversial "Tree of Life," as well as surprising nominations for "Girl with the Dragon Tattoo's" Rooney Mara and Albert Brooks for "Drive" (the comic actor was getting a huge push from fans of the movie for his uncharacteristically dark turn). Woody Allen's "Midnight in Paris" was also strong, with four major nominations for star Owen Wilson, director and screenwriter Woody Allen, and for the movie itself (Best Picture - Musical or Comedy).

Martin Scorsese's "Hugo" and Steven Spielberg's "War Horse" are somewhat inexplicably competing for Best Picture (in the Musical or Comedy and Drama categories respectively) despite barely making a peep elsewhere on the list. Their inclusion seems to be solely based on the names "Scorsese" and "Spielberg" (also, how does Scorsese warrant a Best Director nom for his mostly-ignored film over "Moneyball" director Miller?) Meanwhile, Meryl Streep captured her 26th Golden Globe nomination (and will almost certainly get her 17th Oscar nom) for her portrayal of Margaret Thatcher in "The Iron Lady." And can someone explain how, exactly, "My Week with Marilyn" qualifies as a Musical or Comedy?

Film:

Best Motion Picture - Drama
The Descendants
The Help
Hugo
The Ides of March
Moneyball
War Horse

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama
George Clooney for The Descendants
Leonardo DiCaprio for J. Edgar
Michael Fassbender for Shame
Ryan Gosling for The Ides of March
Brad Pitt for Moneyball

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama
Glenn Close for Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis for The Help
Rooney Mara for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep for The Iron Lady
Tilda Swinton for We Need to Talk About Kevin

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy
Jean Dujardin for The Artist
Brendan Gleeson for The Guard
Joseph Gordon-Levitt for 50/50
Ryan Gosling for Crazy, Stupid, Love
Owen Wilson for Midnight in Paris

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy
Jodie Foster for Carnage
Charlize Theron for Young Adult
Kristen Wiig for Bridesmaids
Michelle Williams for My Week with Marilyn
Kate Winslet for Carnage

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
Kenneth Branagh for My Week with Marilyn
Albert Brooks for Drive
Jonah Hill for Moneyball
Viggo Mortensen for A Dangerous Method
Christopher Plummer for Beginners

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
Bérénice Bejo for The Artist
Jessica Chastain for The Help
Janet McTeer for Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer for The Help
Shailene Woodley for The Descendants

Best Director - Motion Picture
Woody Allen for Midnight in Paris
George Clooney for The Ides of March
Michel Hazanavicius for The Artist
Alexander Payne for The Descendants
Martin Scorsese for Hugo